


Bluebird Lost in Shadow

by Yevynaea



Category: Over the Garden Wall (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Corruption, Friendship, Gen, I know, I'm Sorry, One Shot, Pain, Pretentious, Separations, Transformation, anyway, except wirt's not the one who becomes the beast, i mean not quite gore but, i need to stop doing this, in excessive slightly gory detail, it's the same as my beast!wirt fics basically, my writing style that is, someone pls stop me from writing these things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-03
Updated: 2015-02-03
Packaged: 2018-03-10 07:11:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3281486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yevynaea/pseuds/Yevynaea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"That bad?" She jokes, and she can taste blood in her mouth from biting down too hard on her tongue. She swallows it down and tries not to flinch at how it tastes more like oil than iron.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bluebird Lost in Shadow

"My brother and I are going home." Wirt says, and he picks up the axe, leaves the lantern on the ground in front of the Woodsman and the Beast is still _right there_ still _alive_ and Beatrice needs to know for sure that this monster will be dealt with.

She doesn't wait for Wirt to free Greg from the Edelwood, doesn't wait to see what will happen next if they leave. She rushes forward on half-frozen wings, knocks the lantern over in her haste and scrabbles at the latch until it opens, she can hear the Beast and Wirt both calling for her to stop, even Greg's frog is croaking worriedly, but she's had enough of magic and deals to last a lifetime and she isn't about to stop now that she's an inch from the flame. She does the best she can to purse her beak like she would with lips, and she blows out the light.

She hears screaming, sees shadows disintegrate and reform and come at her like arrows, like thorns, then she's the one screaming because everything is wrong, her feathers aren't falling out but retracting into her skin, her bones are reshaping themselves into something she doesn't want to be. She closes her eyes so she won't have to see it.

She grows, and grows, fingers growing out of wings and then growing longer than they'd ever been before, digging into the soil so they don't dig into her own flesh. Beak giving way to lips and teeth that bite down hard on her tongue to stop the cries of pain that are tearing out of her throat, while bones like branches grow in spirals from the sides of her skull.

It's not the kind of pain that causes tears, but the kind that leaves you with no air in your lungs, feeling like you'd use your own fingernails to shred yourself to ribbons if that'd just make it _stop_. Beatrice lets out a sob, but it's empty, with little breath and almost no sound.

"Oh, no." She hears Wirt say, sad and quiet, and she wants to cry and to laugh and to yell all at once. She's on her hands and knees, head barely held off the ground, when the pain abates. It doesn't stop, not completely, there's still a hollow ache that settles in between her bones, but the agony is gone. She stands, feels off-balance because of the antlers that she's angry she didn't realize could change hands.

Opening her eyes, she notices first that everything is brighter, and she wants to close them again just so she doesn't have to face the reason why. She turns when she notes movement, and sees the Woodsman staring in sadness and fear, turns around and gets the same expression from the frog, and from Wirt.

"That bad?" She jokes, and she can taste blood in her mouth from biting down too hard on her tongue. She swallows it down and tries not to flinch at how it tastes more like oil than iron.

"Beatrice," Wirt trails off, tears in his eyes, and she has an idea of what he's going to say. She takes a shaky breath, about to reply, but then there's a rope of ice looped around her heart, and with a _gust_ it feels like it's been ripped straight from her chest, leaving a hollow nest of shadows behind.

The lantern flares back to life with a flash of sparks, and Wirt startles, staring at it a moment before turning back to her. He looks at her, then down at where Greg is half-freed from the Edelwood, then back up, and she knows what he's thinking as soon as her eyes meet his.

"Don't even think about it." She says, shaking her head. "You need to go home."

"I can send Greg home on his own." Wirt argues.

"Wirt, no! Just go home. I'll be alright." She assures him, and it isn't true; the Woodsman has no reason to chop Edelwoods for the lantern anymore, and she isn't sure whether it's worse to die or to have to steal souls to live, anyway.

Wirt frowns. He finishes freeing his brother, carefully kneeling to put down the axe, and lifts Greg easily up onto his back. Turning away from Beatrice, he takes a few steps through the snow, then looks back over his shoulder, conflicted.

"I'll take care of her, boy." The Woodsman says, nodding at Beatrice when she meets his eyes, then turning back to Wirt. "You get your brother home."

Wirt turns back to face them, glancing at the frog by his feet as if waiting for its opinion. Then he looks back up, and nods.

"Bye." He says to the Woodsman, who inclines his head in acknowledgment. Wirt turns to Beatrice, looks like he wants to hug her but is afraid of what might happen if he does. "Bye, Beatrice."

"Goodbye, Wirt." She says, barely above a whisper. He disappears into the woods, frog hopping along at his feet, and she waits until she can't see him anymore to turn to the Woodsman. "Thanks. He wouldn't have gone if you hadn't said that."

"I meant what I said." The Woodsman says solemnly, as he picks up the lantern, and Beatrice freezes all over again, torn between stopping him and thanking him. "I couldn't save my own daughter, but maybe I can protect someone else's." He goes to pick up his axe, frowns when he lifts it and there's a flash of gold in the snow underneath. "What are these?"

Beatrice looks, and it's the scissors, Adelaide's scissors, Wirt had them all along and he left them for her.

"Oh, you wonderful mistake of nature," She says quietly, laughing, even though Wirt is long gone. She can change her family back now, if they'll let her close enough to do it. The Woodsman gives her a funny look, like he's not sure whether she's still sane, but he hands her the scissors when she reaches for them, and he holds the lantern as carefully as ever.

The flame inside is bright and strong, unwilling to flicker despite how little oil there is feeding it, and it sparks in time with the heartbeat Beatrice doesn't have anymore.


End file.
